W/R REPORT: Just who are the real Democrats here?

"We're not the dissidents," Delaware County Commissioner Larry Bledsoe said Friday. "We support Democrats. It's the party leadership that's the dissidents.

"We are the Democrats," Bledsoe added.

As an old Monroe Township philosopher said: "Them's fightin' words."

A little more than two months before the November election — with the political fate of Bledsoe and two other dissident office-holders up to voters — Bledsoe issued a challenge of sorts to Democratic Party Chairman Steve Stewart in an interview with The W/R Report.

Bledsoe — like his political cohorts, running without making financial contributions to the organized Democratic Party and thus without the party's support — has little to lose by speaking out against the party led by chairman Stewart.

Stewart laughed Friday when first told about Bledsoe's declaration that the party leaders were now the "dissidents."

"He and I both know the truth on that, and so does everybody else," said Stewart, who is also Muncie police chief.

Bledsoe said the mainstream party met last week and emphasized the importance of defeating him and state Rep. Sue Errington.

"My name and Errington's were brought up more than any," Bledsoe said he was told. "They said, 'If we can get two, that's fine, but we'll settle for the one.'"

Bledsoe and Errington aren't the only Democrats running outside the mainstream of their party in November. Mike Scroggins, seeking a second term as Delaware County sheriff, also runs without the support of the party organization.

Three other dissident incumbents run without fall opposition: Coroner Scott Hahn and judges Thomas Cannon Jr. and Linda Ralu Wolf.

Stewart acknowledged his party's leaders and mainstream candidates recently had a meeting at which the topic of the Democratic outsiders was raised.

"We had a campaign meeting, and the subject of the dissidents came up," he said. "It was vigorously discussed...

"I'm sure many, many people will not be supporting the dissidents."

Of course, at this point the only way Bledsoe, Errington and Scroggins can be defeated is if they fall to Republicans. It's not unheard of that the leadership of local parties would encourage their faithful to cross party lines and vote for someone in another party if that would ensure the defeat of an enemy within their own party. It's all unofficial, of course.

Stewart maintained he had not issued an edict demanding that party loyalists work against the dissidents — or for their Republican opponents.

"I don't tell people what to do, " he said.

By the way, the dissidents who don't consider themselves dissidents are also no longer going by the name they were known by in recent past elections. The group's political action committee is Team Democrat but they are operating under the name Democrats for Delaware County. The group will have an open house at its headquarters at 425 N. High St. at 5 p.m. Thursday.

"We're incumbents," Bledsoe said. "We're experienced."

On Nov. 4, we'll see if Democrats for Delaware County's political enemies can bring that experience to an end.

Fatherless children

The impact of a series of events in a southeastside Muncie neighborhood on a rainy night in October 2012 will be felt by more than the direct participants.

As a result of those events — a Muncie man's shooting death, and an earlier armed robbery — as many as a dozen children will either grow up without a father, or at the very least spend a significant portion of their childhoods apart from their dads.

Shooting victim Jamel Barnes, 33, left behind six youngsters.

Terrence Douglass, 27 — who stood trial last week on allegations he gunned down Barnes at Vine and Fifth streets a few minutes after Douglass had robbed a resident of the same neighborhood, at gunpoint, of cash, marijuana, a gun and shoes — has one child.

Douglass — already serving a 20-year prison term imposed in January 2013 for dealing-in-cocaine convictions — was acquitted of the murder charge on Friday night, but convicted of other counts that could result in a sentence of up to 65 years.

And Douglass' co-defendant in the robbery case, Freddie Darnell Perry Jr., has already fathered five children at age 24.

He is expected to plead guilty to felony charges that could send him to prison for up to 40 years.

To contact the authors of this column: Douglas Walker at 765-213-5851 or dwalker@muncie.gannett.com or Keith Roysdon at 765-213-5828 or kroysdon@muncie.gannett.com.